Method and means of compressing tobacco



H. P. TAYLOR Oct. 27, 1931.

METHOD AND MEANS OF GOMPRESSING TOBACCO Filed Sept. 8. 1927 I/IVENTORZ Patented Oct. 27, 1931 HENRY P. TAYLOR, OF WINSTON-SALEM, ORTH CAROLINA METHOD AND MEANS or ooinraE'ss-ING roBAcoo Application filed September 8, 1927.' Serial No. 218,257.

This invention relates to the methods and means of compressing. and packing tobacco by the use of sheets of comminuted fibrous material preferably soaked with paraffin or similar substance prior to the compressing operation.

An object of my invention is to provide means for compressing and packing plug and twist tobacco in such a manner as to prevent leakage in the hydraulic presses used for this purpose.

It is well known in the art that in the fac tories where plug and twist tobacco are made that the impressed pieces of tobacco are placed in a hydraulic press and there subjected to great pressure and it has been a common experience for the tobacco when undergoing the great pressure to which it is subjected will squirt by the movable heads in the press. It is an'object of my inventionto pre- Vent this escape of pressure and the consequent disfiguring of the finished product.

Some of the objects of my invention having been stated, other objects will appear as the description proceeds when taken in connection with the accompanying drawings showing a preferred embodiment of my invention, in which Figure 1 is a side elevation partly in crosssection of a tobacco press, showing my meth- 0d and means;

Figure 2 is a side elevation partly in cross section, showing a box of tobacco having my fibrous member therein;

Figure 3 is an enlarged edge view of one of the fibrous members and 2.

Referring more particularly to the drawings the numeral 10 indicates the vertically disposed supports of 'a tobacco press,. the press being indicated by the numeral 11 which has forked projections 12, thereon which slide on both sides of the supports 10 and a lug 13 is secured to the supports 10 which is adapted to engage the projections 12 to support the press in its lowest position. Projecting into the upper end of the press member 11 is the plunger 14 which is fixedly secured in the press and extends into the upper end of the press 11 and projecting into shown in Figures 1 the lower end of the press 11 is the movable plunger 15 which extends downwardly into ahydraulic chamber (not shown) ,and lying next tothe plunger 15 is one or more steel plates such as is indicated by the numeral 16 and between the steel plate 16 and the plunger l4 the mass of tobacco is placed by means of a door in front of. the'press (not shown) or in some instances tobacoo is placed into the press at the upper end.

Mechanism thus far described is conventional and it has been the experience of those skilled in the art heretofore that when the steel plate 16 is used next to the plungers 14 and 15 that when great to the tobacco that the tobacco will squirt by the edges of the plate 16 after it has become slightly worn. I overcome this squirting by placing next to the tobacco a sheet of fibrous comminuted material indicated by the nuw meral 18 which is cut slightly larger than the press and this sheet of -material 18 is thoroughly soaked in a solution of paraffin and after being removed from the paraflin 1 and allowed to dry. This sheet 18 is then placed in the press in the manner shown in Figure 1 and when a great pressure compressing the tobacco is applied the sheet 18 will be compressed also and the edges of the sheet w will assume a slightly enlarged position as shown in the drawingsand the surface of the sheet 18 which is disposed next to the tobacco will assume a natural rough and ready finish and when the bulk of tobacco 17 is removed from the press the sheets 18 will be very rigid and can be used as a head for packing the compressed tobacco into the caddies or the sheet 18 can be used over and over again in the press 11.

In Figure 2 I have shown the sheet member 18 used in a caddy on box of tobacco 19 which shows the head members 18 secured in place by the conventionable strips 20. By using these members 18 as the head members v for tobacco boxes to provide a head member which is impervious to moisture and which will at all times insure a natural rough and ready finish to the outer surfaces to the end plugs of tobacco.

In the drawings and specification I have pressure is applied 653 I set forth a preferred embodiment of my in vention, and although specifictenns are employed, they are used in a generic and descriptive sense only, and not for purposes of 5 limitation, the scope of the invention being set forth in the appended claim. I claim: i That" method of pressing and packing manufactured tobacco which comprises impregnating two sheets of fibrous comminuted material With a solidified oil, then placing one of said sheets in the bottom of a press, then placing a mass of'tobacco in the-press then placing the other of said sheets in the press on top of the mass of tobacco, then pressing the tobacco andp'ads together at one operation, then placingv the pads and tobacco in a caddyzhaving sidewalls only and confiningthe tobacco and pads-in the caddy tocausethe pads to serve as head and'bottom' members of the caddy.

In testimony whereofI-afiix my signature HENRY P. TAYLOR. 

